Common question but I would really appreciate some advice on buying a new microphone.

So far I have been using a pair of omni directional binaural stereo mics. But there's a lot of noise on my recordings and I can hear that the quality is not so good. They seem to be lacking body/low end and sound quite sharp and flat or "boring". My friend and I recorded some crackle from bending a dvd cover and the recording made with his SE Electronics vocal condenser mic was much better than mine. It sounded crispy and warm and had much less noise.

So these are the qualities I am looking for when buying my next microphone: Warm, crispy (airy?) and just real great sounding.

I am going to use them mainly for recording all kinds of sounds for making electronica/IDM such as hitting different kinds of objects, percussion, smashing a bottle, crackle and whatever.

I'm considering the AKG 451B which is for drums, percussion, guitar etc. but a little less expensive one would be fine too. It must be cardioid.

This description sounds quite nice:

"The C 451B is an excellent tool for accurately capturing signals rich in transients such as drums, overhead miking, or other instruments with a percussive sound. The airy sound, high overload limit of the capsule and electronic circuitry, and improved engineering details of the C 451B are a solid foundation for creating another legend."

I often use two C451Bs for recording drums as overhead. The sound is pretty good. It suits almost all music instruments. C451B is a special microphone that makes you happy with the sound. You may be thinking of less expensive one, but my advice is that you should manage to get C451B. Ordinary cardioid microphones can't match it. The price is high, yes, but you'll be able to understand the reason.

Thanks. Now I am wondering if it would be better to get a mic with a larger diaphragm like that SE condensator micin order to get that crispiness and warmth? The C 451B is said to be precise and not coloring the sound. That's fine but if I can get more warmth and crispiness I'd rather have that. Anyone know if I can even get that? Maybe I've gone too obsessed with this...

I have been able to take an AKG C451B mic home from the shop to try it out.It sounds great and it definitely has low end. I really like that it is very low noise and small too. Makes it great for field recordings. I'll have to compare it with other mics.

My only option has been using the binaurals with my minidisc because of the plugin power. I then use to record that into my computer. I always recorded with the mics clipped onto a pencil for stereo rec.They do have low end but my recordings sound quite weak compared to those from the condenser.

Their s/n is 65 db. The AKG 451 is 76 db. Quite a difference! And it's very easy to hear on the recordings.

I'm quite certain by now that I'm not going to buy the AKG 451's. Their sensitivity is low and they seem to be better for drums.

I am going to have a look at the Audio Technica AE5100. It's a large capsule condenser which is supposed to have a warm, rich and accurate sound. Their s/n is 83 db! That must be very low noise if I understand correctly.

Also the Rode NT-3 and NT-4 look interesting and they are battery powered so that means that I can take them outside for field recordings.

Soarer I always recorded with the mics clipped onto a pencil for stereo rec.They do have low end but my recordings sound quite weak compared to those from the condenser.

This is one of the main problems. Binaural means that the mics are designed to be used in ear or in the vicinity of the ear, relying on the larger surface of the sides of the head to provide some pressure zone for lower frequencies.

In a way, binaural microphones function as a type of pressure-zone microphone; particularly for low frequency response. In fact, Crown makes a nice binaural microphone using two PZMs, called SASS.

Binaural microphones also rely upon some type of barrier between for stereo separation. Clipped onto a pencil, you would not have that. Mounted in someone's ears, you have a very nice barrier.

Also, if you had them clipped to a pencil, chances are that you were not getting the required separation.

That does seem to be a pretty crummy signal to noise ratio, but even with these mics, you would get much better sounding recordings if you used them in the fashion they were designed to be used in.

If you don't like the idea of putting the mics in your ears, or if they don't fit, try clipping them to the temple pieces of a pair of glasses, with the elements as close to the ear position as possible. You'll be much happier with the result and the sound will sound much 'bigger' than co-located mics on a pencil.

rockstar_notBest Wishes and please contribute some recordings to freesound with your results!

I will!

I have tested the Rode-NT4 and the Audio Technica AE5100.

The Rode mic picks up quite a lot of background noise. It's almost omni directional. I can hear cars from the street etc. Makes nice stereo recordings but it is huge and there's definitely some audible noise in the recordings. Not much but compared to the Ae5100...

The AE5100 is the best mic of the 2 I think. No noise!!! Really incredible. This is a luxury when being use to the noisy binaurals. Even when I boost the signal a lot I only hear background noises but no noise. I recorded some water being poured in a glass. Sounds almost like a Coca Cola commercial! So it makes real clean recordings. If I really want stereo recordings I'll get a second one :wink:

So whether it's warm and crispy or not is hard to say but it has full body and low end and it sounds great.

AE5100 is my first mic for field-recordings. I didn't notice it's so nice. When I got it, I actually knew nothing of what the recording is all about. After reading Soarer's, I feel like using it again.